Post by Nester the Lark on Jun 2, 2018 12:37:56 GMT -5

So, anyone else been playing Curse of the Moon?

I've been playing it for the past week. It's a good faux NES-style game that captures the pace and gameplay of classic Castlevania pretty well (maybe too well in some ways). At first, it seemed a little insubstantial, but it was when I started replaying it in the extra game modes that it started to sink in exactly what it was going for, and it just got better from there.

My concern is that Bloodstained, as a series, may stick a little too closely to Castlevania. If it's truly going to be a spiritual successor, then it needs to stand on its own, otherwise it'll be nothing more than an imitation that never escapes Castlevania's shadow. Additionally, there are already many other indie games that put their own unique spins on the metroidvania formula.

That said, I understand that mimicking NES Castlevania is kind of the whole point of Curse of the Moon, and satisfies fans that are mainly looking for nostalgia.

I think maybe it also does a good job of establishing some point of reference for the main game. It's a little strange that the debut of Bloodstained is a small side-game that may not even be canon, but as a jumping off point, maybe it can help diffuse some of the expectations people form in their heads about what Bloodstained will be. Maybe it'll feel natural going from an 8-bit Castlevania clone to a modern metroidvania with a setting and characters people are already familiar with.

Post by nocturnal YL on Jun 3, 2018 2:58:35 GMT -5

I'm fairly certain that we don't have many overlaps in this forum, especially when it comes to third party games.

I can't say anything regarding something I haven't even looked into before, but I do agree that it's generally not a good idea of indie games imitating abother series too closely. Besides the problem of establishing identity, I also found it very disrespectful towards the owners of the original series. There's also the problem of games imitating in form only without really understanding what made the original great, although I have yet to hear about that with Bloodstained.

Post by Nester the Lark on Jun 3, 2018 11:49:39 GMT -5

I realize no one else is playing it, but I at least wanted to give the illusion of discussion.

As for spiritual successors, Bloodstained is being worked on by some former Castlevania staff, notably producer Koji Igarashi and composer Michiru Yamane, so I think they understand the style and gameplay of Castlevania. But the problem is that Bloodstained, as a brand new IP, doesn't have a legacy to lean on. With Castlevania, you could expect connections and references to other games through lore, characters, or music. Those are things that keep fans invested in the series. But with Bloodstained, even though, for example, it has the same music composer, we're not going to hear new versions of classic music. It'll just be similarly styled.

Curse of the Moon can help alleviate the problem slightly by introducing the basic beginning of a legacy before the main game comes out, but it's impossible for it to provide what Castlevania had build up over the years.

And that's why it's important for Bloodstained to stand on its own. It needs its own hook, or some way to stand apart from Castlevania, otherwise it's just a copy that's harder to get invested in.

I suppose the silver lining, though, in this case, is that Castlevania was built on a lot of public domain material. Konami does not own Dracula, vampires, castles, werewolves, demons, Frankenstein's monster, etc., and Bloodstained can make as much use of that as it wants. It just has to use it in a different context.

Post by Nester the Lark on Aug 20, 2018 11:41:39 GMT -5

Well, Ritual of the Night is officially delayed to 2019 (apparently to address feedback from the recent backer beta demo). Also, Vita version is cancelled. Backers who chose the Vita are given the option to either change platforms or get a refund.

Post by Nester the Lark on Feb 13, 2019 18:37:56 GMT -5

So, Ritual of the Night is looking good. I like the "inversion" mechanic. It's a good nod to Symphony of the Night, as well as a unique gimmick to help give the game its own identity. A metroidvania has to be more than just a metroidvania to stand out among today's indie games, even if it's by one of the people who helped define the genre.